I couldn’t help but cry out in surprise. “Princess Adrienne?! And Empress Victoria... Forgive my rudeness! I thought it was a soldier...”
“Please be at ease,” Adrienne said. “It has been some time since our last meeting, Sir Shuuichi.”
“Quite some time indeed,” Victoria added.
The two of them greeted me with smiles without seeming at all bothered by my lack of manners.
But what brings them here? The higher mages of the Ursna Empire that Empress Victoria loaned to us are being treated as if they’re our own officers. Even the knights from the Merkava Kingdom here to observe the battle have been treated with great respect.
I couldn’t think of a reason for them to come all this way until Empress Victoria herself explained.
“Several days ago, Miki informed us of Noa’s situation. And also about the matter involving your son, Kouki. Shortly after, the Ursna Empire and the Merkava Kingdom secretly held discussions with Noa.”
“The matter we discussed was the prospect of sending volunteer soldiers to Noa,” Adrienne added. “To put it briefly, we are considering sending soldiers from the Multi-Race Coalition Force into your world.”
I welcomed the idea of the empire and the kingdom sending us soldiers. But soldiers from cultures on their level could hardly fight against New World; they’d be annihilated instantly.
“It’s clear from the look on your face what you’re thinking,” said Victoria. “You don’t believe that we can be of any use to you.”
“No, I wasn’t thinking that... But if you fight in our world, you’d be fighting an enemy with the same equipment that we use.”
“I am well aware. Anyone standing in front of your rifles is easily shot down. Anyone hiding below the ground can be crushed by missiles. Even a surprise attack will fail in the face of your powered suits.”
They’re willing to give us soldiers, despite knowing this? Would they be foolish enough to waste their own soldiers in hopeless battles? They must have some sort of plan...
“We will not fight,” Adrienne explained. “Instead, we will make it difficult for the enemy. If the enemy is hidden by the terrain, we will change the terrain. If the weather puts our side at a disadvantage, we will change the weather. If we cannot win against their powered suits, we will work our magic against the humans inside.”
“Perhaps we are little more than uncivilized barbarians to you, but we can learn from the examples of others,” Victoria added. “You have protected the empire and the kingdom. It is our turn to protect you.”
“We need not be concerned about magical energy. If we charge our magical energy with the gems created by Kon, we can use magic in your world.”
I had them all wrong... I’ve misunderstood the people of G-88. I thought they had no way to fight against our technology, but is that really true? The tactics they’ve just explained could be enough to drive us back and maybe even defeat us.
I could think of nothing more frightening than an enemy that could change the terrain and the environment. Such an enemy would make all maps and tactics worthless.
“I understand,” I said. “We’ll make a formal request for volunteer soldiers from the empire and the kingdom.”
“We will be at your service,” Adrienne replied.
“You can trust in us,” Victoria agreed.
“Oh, I forgot,” Adrienne put in. “Out of the demonic races providing soldiers, there was one race that volunteered for battle in the sea’s polar regions.”
“Which race?” I asked with trepidation.
I have a bad feeling about this. It’s the same feeling I always have before hearing that Kouki’s done something stupid again.
“The kraken race,” Victoria told me. “They were unable to participate in the previous war because the battles took place on land, but this time they’ll have a part to play. In a previous mock battle, there was a mention of... nuc... nucle...?”
“You mean nuclear submarines?”
“Ooh! Yes, they defeated the nuclear submarine, Tolstoy. Slow weapons like torpedoes are of no use against krakens.”
The torpedoes carried by the Tolstoy were an improved version of the super cavitation torpedoes based on the Russian-made ZS-115 Grom, and they traveled through water at a speed of 200 knots.
I can’t even imagine a creature that would consider something approaching at over 370 kilometers per hour slow. The thought of such a creature made my blood run cold.
There was another knock at the door.
“Please, come in,” I said.
It was Kouki who entered.
I’d heard from Miki that Kouki would be coming to G-88 to see me once she was done lecturing him. Knowing how angry Miki must have been, I decided I wouldn’t give him any further lectures myself.
Instead, I had a question for him.
“Good timing,” I said. “Ursna and Merkava are both about to provide military support to Noa. I was wondering if you had any thoughts on this? I realize that, with the exception of a few races, they’ll be outclassed on the battlefield, but I believe we need their help to set up our positions...”
Kouki tilted his head and looked at me curiously. Then he seemed to realize something. He nodded before taking a seat.
“Well...” he said, “I’ll get right to the point. I think you’ve got it all wrong. Outclassed? That’s just because these two nations don’t know how to fight against an enemy with modern equipment. If they knew the right methods, it would be Noa at risk of being outclassed.”
“What do you mean?” I asked.
“Empress Victoria. Tell me, if five powered suits were to appear in the capital city of the Ursna Empire, how would you defeat them?”
“Let me see... In the capital, mages can line the walls and produce an almighty fireball. Though that might not suffice to destroy a powered suit.”
Exactly. A powered suit couldn’t be stopped so easily. The suit would be capable of withstanding temperatures of up to 10,000°C for a moment or two, assuming its cooler was operating correctly. Even if the suit could be stopped, this would only be effective against an attacking force no larger than several hundred soldiers.
“You’re right, they wouldn’t be destroyed,” Kouki said. “But I’d be able to defeat them with just four mages and two members of the mantis race. First, I’d use magic to turn the ground to mud around the powered suits. That would reduce maneuverability of the suits for a moment. Do you know what would come next, Dad?”
“They’d just jump to a location with more stable footing.”
“That’s what I’d be waiting for. While they were in the air, I’d use magic that produced large fireballs and water-balls.”
“But using those types of magic simultaneously would cause an explosion!” Adrienne objected.
“Exactly, Princess Adrienne.” Kouki grinned. “You’d call it a steam explosion. In such a situation, the sensors used by powered suits would temporarily shut down. They’d recover within several seconds, but surrounded by dense steam, the visibility would be so poor that they’d be blind. Then the mantis race would strike the weakest parts of the suits. Essentially, their scythes would attack the joint portions.”
A mantis scythe would be enough to cut through the joint parts, I realized. If the ground suddenly turned to mud and then there was a steam explosion, I can’t even imagine fighting during the confusion that would cause. When you think about it, Kouki’s methods could be incredibly effective.
“Then I’d seal the immovable suits inside within rock-like domes and wait for their batteries to run out. Or you could use summoning magic to call something like a golem. Given enough time, it could probably break apart a suit.”
I see. I was impressed. I’m surprised how many tactics there are, when you think about it that way. Kouki seems to be giving Empress Victoria and Princess Adrienne a lot to think about. I’ll leave this to Kouki. He’ll find a way to combine our modern technology with their magic. Someone like me or Cote would probably be weighed down by our common sense. I’ll leave it to Kouki to come up with the right tactics.